Total pages in book: 34
Estimated words: 32156 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 161(@200wpm)___ 129(@250wpm)___ 107(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 32156 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 161(@200wpm)___ 129(@250wpm)___ 107(@300wpm)
“Gathred, what’s going on? What’s that noise?”
He’s standing beneath the exit hatch. When he turns my way I see his brows draw tight. “Stay back. I don’t want you hurt when that hatch opens.”
“What’s going on?” I ask again.
“Somebody is trying to get in. They’ve been cutting up the tree that fell, with a chainsaw I’m guessing.”
“Who is it?”
“I haven’t asked. They don’t know anyone’s here. That gives us an advantage.”
“Your orc friends?” I throw out, narrowing my eyes. Despite what we’ve done together, I haven’t forgotten that he was with the ones that attacked.
He shrugs. “If it is, they’ll have to get past me, my little Dostha. But I don’t think so. They don’t have tools like that.”
I stand back like he told me, but I won’t leave. I need to see what’s coming as much as he does, and I’m not some wilting flower that needs protecting all the time. I’m waiting right here.
I don’t have to wait long.
A few moments later, the whirring of the saw stops, and Gathred braces himself against the ladder that leads up to the hatch, climbing the first few rungs. There’s a scraping noise, then the sound of metal against metal, and finally the hatch opens.
And Gathred is through in an instant.
“Hey! What the fuck?” The voice is human, male. Adult. Beyond that, I don’t know what’s going on. “What were you doing down there? This is—”
“Come on up, Aleena, it’s safe.” Gathred’s voice calls out from above, and I don’t wait to be asked a second time.
After a night trapped underground, it’s good to see the sky again. Trees loom up all around, and there are freshly sawn logs in a rough pile nearby. Gathred is standing between me and a man in his forties, his beard just starting to gray in patches.
“What the fuck were you two doing down there? Hey, she’s human!”
I frown. “What gave it away?”
“This is my home, lady. Don’t you talk back to me or I’ll—”
“You’ll what, little man?” Gathred growls as he steps forward, and my heart jumps into my throat as I cringe, wondering what’s about to happen. This guy’s being a dick but that’s about it.
Luckily, he pulls back, putting his hands up in a gesture of surrender. “Nothing!” he squeaks. “I was just surprised to see you down there, is all. Can’t blame a guy for getting defensive over his place. I’m sure I don’t have anything to worry about though, right?” He laughs nervously. “My casa is your casa, dude.”
Gathred grunts non-committally, but stops. For a second, there’s silence, then. “Thanks.” He turns to me. “I need to get you away from here. You’re a loose end. Others might come.”
“What? No, I’ve got to go back to the compound.”
He shakes his head. “Too dangerous. I’ll make sure you have everything you want. We need to keep moving.”
“What I want is my father. And…” I hesitate, reminding myself again that he was with the others. He’s one of them. Katya is back there, but I don’t want to tell him that. “And my home,” I finish, sticking out my chin.
“Your father…” Gathred steps forward and I take a step back. I won’t be caught by him. “Your father can fend for himself,” he says, but there’s something he’s not telling me. Something to do with my father, why they attacked the compound. I was right not to trust him. “Your home is with me.”
“The fuck it is,” I murmur.
The ground here is uneven. That’s to my advantage. I’m small and agile, even if I’m not as fast as him. I outran him to get here. I can outrun him back again, especially if I keep low branches between the two of us. Gathred keeps stepping forward, but I step back, steadily getting closer to the nearest tree.
“Aleena, what we did…I don’t think you understand what this means.”
“I don’t think you understand,” I say, even as my heart races at his words. I feel this connection to him, I can’t deny it. But family first. Family always. “It didn’t mean anything to me. It was just a way to pass the time, that’s all.”
The lie burns in my mouth.
He shakes his head. “I know that’s not true. It’s not how this works. You’re my family.”
He winces, like the word is hurting him, and I remember the attacks he’s had already. He recovers fast, but if I’m going to go I need to go now, while he can’t chase.
I risk a glance behind. I can make it. Even so, it’s hard. Hard to leave him. But I have to be strong. “I’m not an orc,” I tell him, then turn and flee.
The compound is quiet. Eerily quiet. I stand and look up at it as I try to catch my breath, hoping the dizziness I’m feeling is just exhaustion and not a blood sugar issue. I check behind for any signs of pursuit. Nothing yet. The ATV I tried to escape on is turned over in the mud, and someone has spray-painted “Hzarka territory” on the underside.